Methods and systems for retrieving data stored in a database

Abstract

A computer-implemented, transaction-making, municipal bond trading system having a capability to conduct a private electronic auction of bid wanteds between a central brokers' broker and multiple prospective remote bidders and to maintain a reference database of accurate individual bond lot descriptions and identifications, including CUSIP (trademark) numbers.

1. A method comprising:
 receiving a query for data stored in at least one of a plurality of databases; 
 searching at least a first database and a second database of the plurality of databases in succession until the data is retrieved from the first database or the second database, the first and second database comprising a plurality of substantially matched data fields; 
 updating data fields of the first database with the data retrieved from matched data fields of the second database, the data retrieved from the second database absent in the first database; and 
 outputting the data retrieved from the at least one database. 
 
     
     
       2. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first database comprises a subset of the data of the second database. 
     
     
       3. The method of  claim 1 , the first and the second databases having at least one common data field there between, the method comprising synchronizing data associated with the at least one common data field periodically. 
     
     
       4. The method of  claim 1 , comprising purging inactive data from the first database periodically. 
     
     
       5. The method of  claim 1 , comprising priming the first database with a subset of data from the second database. 
     
     
       6. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first database comprises substantially no additional fields to the fields of the second database. 
     
     
       7. The method of  claim 1 , comprising updating the first database with data from the second database periodically. 
     
     
       8. The method of  claim 1 , comprising updating the first database with data from the second database nightly. 
     
     
       9. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the first database is smaller in size than the second database. 
     
     
       10. A method for retrieving data from a database comprising:
 receiving a query for data stored in at least one of a plurality of databases; 
 searching at least a first database and a second database of the plurality of databases in succession until the data is retrieved from the first database or the second database, wherein the first and second databases comprising a plurality of substantially matched data fields, and wherein the first database comprises a subset of the data of the second database; 
 updating data fields of the first database with the data retrieved from matched data fields of the second database, the data retrieved from the second database absent in the first database; and 
 outputting the data retrieved from the at least one database. 
 
     
     
       11. A method for retrieving data from a database comprising:
 receiving a query for data stored in at least one of a plurality of databases; 
 searching at least a first database and a second database of the plurality of databases in succession until the data is retrieved from the first database or the second database, the first and second database comprising a plurality of substantially matched data fields and having at least one common data field there between; 
 updating data fields of the first database with the data retrieved from matched data fields of the second database, the data retrieved from the second database absent in the first database; 
 providing as output the data retrieved from the at least one database; 
 synchronizing data associated with the at least one common data field periodically; and 
 purging inactive data from the first database periodically.